A New Life to Live
by NiennaAngel
Summary: SpencerxMax... Full summary inside. Max and Spencer are dating, but no one knows.
1. A Lovely Evening At Home For Two

Odd coupling alert! I claim first SpencerxMax fic. I know, I'm weird and damn proud of it! Personally I like this little couple. Give a shot... pretty please with sugar on top.

Summary: Max and Spencer are both students at New York University (NYU) (Max is an undergrad and Spencer is a grad student). They're dating, but no one knows so when they go to a BBA reunion and people start to figure it out they run into a little trouble and disapproval.

_blah_ - thoughts

"blah" - talking

* * *

Max sat in front of his computer glaring at the program he was working on. _I just had to choose a double major in game design and computer programming didn't I? I couldn't have just picked a simple major like English or Japanese could I? No… I just had to pick game design and computer programming. I just had to torture myself with an insane schedule and frustrating professors. I am such a moron._ He let his head fall onto the keyboard and let out a soft groan. Big strong hands started massaging his shoulders to help relieve the stress building up in his muscles. He hummed in pleasure to let his lover know just how much he appreciated the comforting gesture. 

"What's wrong Max? You don't usually get this tense over a small project like that." The hands continued to work out the kinks in his shoulders and back as the smooth voice soothed the dull ache in his head.

Max sighed in exhaustion as he answered. "I just can't get this program to work. No matter how many ways I try it I keep running into the same exact problem. It's frustrating, annoying and obnoxious."

"Maybe you should take a break and come have dinner. It'll get cold if you don't." Max nodded and turned around in his swivel chair. He smiled up at his lover and accepted the outstretched hand. Max followed his lover to the kitchen table where a delicious looking pasta and veal dish was laid out for the two of them to enjoy.

They ate in a comfortable silence for the majority of the meal before Max broke the silence. "Spencer, this is delicious. Where did you get the recipe?"

"Ray e-mailed it to me yesterday. He said something along the lines of getting into the pants of whoever I cooked it for." Max grinned and laughed out loud at his friend. "Feeling better?"

"For the most part, but that program is still annoying me."

"When's it due?" Spencer was watching him critically for any hint of a reaction meaning that he was more than a little concerned about Max's health.

"Next week which means that I have more than enough time to work on it and ask my professor for help with it. If I agree to not work on it for the rest of the night will you stop looking at me like that?" The American turtle got nervous every time his lover's jade eyes adopted a look that said he was being psychoanalyzed.

"Will you agree to relax for the rest of the night?" Max nodded and smiled at his concerned lover. "Then I'll let it go for now. You know I'm just worried about you. You get enough migraines a month already. You don't need to give yourself more by stressing out over things that you don't need to stress over." Max leaned over the table and kissed the older blond.

"You know what sounds really good right now?"

"What?"

"A bubble bath for two." Spencer chuckled and nodded as the phone started ringing.

"I'll get it." The elder blond stood and picked up the phone. "Hello?" Max half-heartedly listened in on his lover's half of the conversation while he cleaned up the dishes. "Max, Mr. Dickenson wants to know if we want to go to a reunion here in New York in two weeks."

"Yeah. I don't think I have anything too big to worry about then. It'll be fun to see the others again. We haven't seen any of them in so long." Spencer nodded and turned his attention back to his phone call. Max finished washing and putting the dishes away before walking over to the bathroom to start the bath. He poured the bubble bath in and dug through the cabinet for the candles and matches. By the time Spencer came in the bath was filled and the candles were lit. "What took so long?"

"Dickenson had a million questions about why we're living together, how college is going and how we've been doing. I hope you don't mind but I just told him that since we're both going to NYU that we decided to get an apartment together to help cut costs." Spencer placed his hand gently on Max's hips as he spoke.

Max turned to face his much taller lover. "I don't care. It's not like anyone knows we're dating. We may only be three years apart, but my parents certainly didn't react well to our living together as 'friends' and I don't even want to think what the others would say." Max smiled up at Spencer lazily. "Now, about this nice hot bubble bath I drew for us that is going to go cold before we get in at this rate." Spencer chuckled and pulled Max into his arms for a tight hug and a gentle kiss before undressing his younger lover.

They relaxed in the tub together with only the candles Max had lit to see by. Spencer started massaging Max's back in an attempt to get the turtle to further relax. "Mm. That feels really good." Max leaned forward slightly so that it was easier for his Russian lover to work out the knots in his back. He squeezed his eyes as he felt a migraine coming on. "Spence, my head's starting to hurt."

"Alright. Come on." Spencer helped Max out of the tub and dried him off gently. "Why don't you go get ready for bed and lay down? I'll get your medicine and a cold compress for you." Max nodded and made his way to the bedroom that he and Spencer had been sharing for the last year and a half of their three year relationship. He pulled on a pair of boxers and a pair of Spencer's running shorts before climbing into their king size bed. Spencer came in with the items he promised as well as a glass of water to swallow the pills with.

Once Max was settled in bed Spencer lay down beside him and pulled him close. "Stay with me until I fall asleep" Max whimpered softly as a tear ran down the side of his face. The dull ache in his head had turned into a ferocious migraine in the few minutes since they had climbed out of the tub.

"Of course love. Try and get some sleep. I'm not going anywhere anytime soon." Spencer watched over Max until he fell asleep before allowing himself to fall asleep as well.

* * *

So... is it crap, is it okay, is it good should i completely give up on this idea? I like it and i'll probably write out the story if just for myself. If you'd like to read more please tell me in a review so that I can have some idea if ya'll like it. Thanks for reading. 


	2. Tension

Chapter two. I personally like this story and I'm really on a roll with writing it so I think I'll post it even if I don't get a lot of hits or reviews.If you do like this story please please tell me. Thank you and enjoy.

* * *

Max walked into his apartment exhausted and wanting nothing more than to simply curl up in bed with Spencer and spend the rest of the evening there. Unfortunately fate was working against him. When he walked into the living room he came face to face with his parents who smiled at him. "Max! I thought you were done early on Wednesdays." Judy greeted.

Max walked over and hugged both of his parents. "Hi Mom. Hi Dad. Tuesdays and Thursdays are my early days. I don't start until late on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. What are you doing here?" Max looked between his parents completely confused. The tension in his shoulders was getting worse and the annoyed look on Spencer's face wasn't helping any.

"We just came by to see how you're doing. It's been awhile since you came home for dinner" Mr. Tate explained.

"I've been pretty busy. The semester ends in another two weeks so all of the big projects are due now. I call at least once a week. I wish you would have told me you were coming over. I would have told you to come over on a better night. I'm exhausted and I'm really not up to doing much tonight." Max's baby blues darted between his parents hoping that he hadn't offended or hurt them. "I'm sorry. That was really rude."

"It's alright Max. I remember how stressful college was and I only had one major. You have two very challenging majors. We'll forgive your slightly shorter temper." Max smiled at his father thankfully.

"Spencer said that you two are planning on going to the reunion" Judy started.

"Mom, don't start. I know that you don't like that Spencer and I are living together, but it's a perfectly logical situation. We've known each other and have been friends for years. We go to the same school and both hold down weekend jobs to pay the rent and utilities. We can always count on the other to pay his half of the bills on time. I really don't want to have this argument _again_. Not tonight when I've been to four classes and then to my professor's office for two hours to work on a program that's been giving me problems for the past week and a half. I'm exhausted, short-tempered and in a relatively bad mood. It'll just get real ugly real fast and I don't want to do that. If you'll excuse me I'm going to go lay down before I give myself a migraine." Max left the room and walked into the dark bedroom. He flung himself onto the bed face down and buried his face in the sheets. He had gone to see his professor after class to ask him for help on his program only to have his professor refuse to give him any truly helpful answers. He had a headache and was praying that it wouldn't escalate into a migraine.

Spencer walked in and climbed onto the bed gently wrapping his arms around Max's waist and pulling him into his lap. It had taken him several minutes to convince the Tates to leave and let him look after Max for the evening. He promised to have Max call them in the morning. Now his focus was completely on Max. He had even gone so far as to take the phone off the hook in the kitchen so that they wouldn't be interrupted by any phone calls. "You okay? You kind of hurt your mom's feelings with that little tirade of yours."

Max sank back into Spencer's arms as he let out a soft sigh. "I'm just so sick of hearing her bag on you. I want to tell her so bad that I'm dating you, but I'm afraid she'll disown me and stop paying for my tuition and if that happens I'm screwed." Spencer's arms tightened around his waist in a reassuring hug.

"We'll deal with your parents once you've graduated. Then you won't have to worry about it. For now, though, why don't you stretch out on your stomach and I'll give you a back massage to help you relax. Then if you're feeling up to it we'll do something else to make you feel better."

Max laughed at his lover. "Pervert!" he teased gently. "We'll see. It's been awhile since we last made love." Max tugged off his shirt and stretched out on the bed so that Spencer could put his skilled hands to use on his tense and knotted muscles. The Russian picked up a bottle of massage oil and squeezed an ample amount onto his palm. He rubbed his hands together and started to massage the tension from Max's back.

"We need to do something about your stress level Max. It's taking a serious toll on your personality and your health."

"Can we talk about that tomorrow morning? I really just want to relax and be with you right now." Spencer frowned when Max's voice hitched slightly, but he decided not to push the topic. He really only wanted his turtle to relax and feel comfortable.

"Sure Max. We can wait until tomorrow." Spencer's fingers dipped beneath Max's shorts as a smirk crossed his face.

Max groaned as he rolled over in Spencer's arms. "Something wrong love?" Spencer inquired softly as he pulled Max flush against his chest.

"My ass hurts." Spencer chuckled and kissed the turtle's forehead. "I don't care though. The discomfort now is a price worth paying for the pleasure you create." There was another soft chuckle from Spencer that Max felt more than heard. "Love you Spencer."

"Love you too Max."

"Spencer, what are we going to do about the reunion? I mean how are we going to keep everyone from finding out about us? There are more than a few beybladers that could probably put two and two together better than my mom and dad or Mr. Dickenson."

"We'll deal with that when it comes. We're probably better off telling Kai. If we ask, he'll keep it quiet. Otherwise we'll just have to refrain from flirting, checking each other out, spending most of the time together, or referencing anything that has to do with our relationship."

"You do realize that it's almost impossible to do that last one. If we talk about living together it'll be damn near impossible not to let something slip that'll make someone suspicious."

"Like I said, we'll deal with it later. For now let's just relax and enjoy the rest of the evening." Max nodded his agreement and leaned back into Spencer's chest.

* * *

okie dokie.. please review... i'd appreciate it a lot. thank you for taking the time to read it though. 


	3. Enter Kai

I'm reposting this chpater. I realized that I made a numerical error with Spencer and Max's relationship. They've only been living together for 1 and 1/2 years, but I said that they've been dating for three and moved in together after 6 months. That doesn't compute. Sorry. You don't have to re-read. All I did was change a few numbers and gave Spencer an extra line where they're talking about how long they've been living together.

Original intro: Chapter three is up and it's long! It's almost twice the length of any other chapter I've written! I'm so proud of myself and thanks to Adam for encouraging me to write a longer chapter and the idea of including flashbacks! Also thanks to Alf, Kenzie Jadenwie, and Elemental Gypsy for their support of this story. Prepare for backstory people! Enjoy!

* * *

Max climbed onto Spencer's lap successfully distracting his lover from the introduction to psychology papers he was grading. He smiled brightly at his older lover who simply raised an eyebrow in return. "Do you remember when you first asked me out?"

Spencer blinked at the unexpected question. These questions usually came out around their anniversary, not when they had just celebrated a month earlier. "Of course I remember. What's gotten into you Max?"

Max grinned at the Russian whale and snuggled further into his lap. Spencer, realizing that he wasn't going to finish grading the undergrad papers just yet, relented and wrapped his arms around Max's bare waist and leaned back into the overstuffed wingback chair they were sitting in. "Nothing's gotten into me except you… and food." Spencer chuckled at the last part since it was merely added on as an after thought. "I was just thinking about what to tell Kai about us when he gets here in an hour. I thought it would be nice to tell him how we got together."

Spencer smiled and kissed his lover's forehead gently. "If you're going to tell him about how we got together than you'll have to explain how we met on campus and about our lunches. Then you can tell him about how I asked you out to dinner in what I considered a vain attempt to get your attention. Then he'll want to know about our moving in together which means explaining that you've been lying to your parents for the past year and a half about our living arrangements, that we share a bedroom, and that we have a sex-life. Do you really want to explain all that to Kai?" Spencer was looking at him critically again, but Max brushed it off this time.

"Sure! I mean, why not? This is Kai we're talking about. He's like an older brother to me and he likes and admires you. The only questions he'll ask about our sex-life is if we have one and if we're being careful. I don't think he'll mind my not telling my parents about us. He knows that they don't trust anyone that grew up in the abbey. They don't even really trust him that much. If you don't want me to though, I'll just explain that we're together, but I'd rather not go into detail about our relationship and ask him to keep it to himself. Well, I'll do that last part no matter what." Before Max could continue rambling Spencer pressed their lips together in a sweet and gentle kiss.

"Max, I love you, I'm okay with whatever you want to tell him. I just wanted to make sure you knew what he was going to ask when you dropped this bombshell on him. I know Kai really well and I know how protective he is of you. Don't be surprised if he threatens to hurt me if I ever hurt you."

Max blinked in confusion over that last sentence, "but that's a null point because you'll never hurt me."

Spencer chuckled and pulled Max closer. "No, I'd never hurt you." Max tucked his head gently under Spencer's chin and closed his eyes content to relax in his boyfriend's embrace. "You know I really should be grading those papers."

"I know, but they can wait. You don't have that class until Monday and its Thursday."

Spencer blinked several times. "Max, love, it's Friday."

"It is? I could have sworn it was Thursday."

Spencer placed his fingers gently under Max's chin and tilted his head up so that they could look into each other's eyes. "It's a good thing you didn't have classes today. You wouldn't have gone to the right ones." Max blushed, but was saved from further humiliation by the sound of someone knocking on the door. He bounced off Spencer's lap and ran to open the door.

"Kai!" Max threw his arms around the phoenix standing in front of him. Kai laughed and hugged back.

"Max, stop suffocating and let him in" Spencer called from where he was still seated in the wingback chair grading the papers sitting in front of him. Max blushed again and let go of Kai before letting him enter.

"How have you been Max? Good if your greeting is any indication." Max led Kai into the living room where Spencer was sitting. "Spencer, it's good to see you again. Tala's beginning to wonder if you ever plan on coming back to Russia."

Spencer put down his pen and stood to shake hands with his friends. "I might come back for a visit once I'm done with graduate school, but I was planning on staying in America to live and practice."

Max bounced over to Spencer's side a huge grin on his face. "I should hope so! It'd be awfully hard to date you if you were living in Russia!" Max's hands flew to his mouth the minute the statement was out of his mouth. He looked over at Kai who was staring at them in disbelief.

"You two?" Both blonds nodded. "Alright. Explain. One of you."

"Well, it's kind of a long story. So you might as well make yourself comfortable. Do you want anything to drink?" Max was stalling and both Kai and Spencer knew it.

"Max, stop stalling and start explaining everything and I do mean everything." All three took seats in the living room. Spencer and Max sat together on the wingback while Kai sat across from them on the couch.

--**Flashback**--

_Max was walking across the center of campus towards the coffee shop when he saw a familiar blond talking with a bunch of boys and girls that appeared to be upperclassmen. A quick crunching of numbers told him that the blond was in all likelihood a senior. Biting his lip he changed direction and walked over to the group. "Spencer?"_

_The blond looked at him and raised an eyebrow at him. "Max? What are you doing here?"_

"_Well, uh, I'm going to school here. I just started this semester so…" he trailed off as the group Spencer was with started looking down their noses at him. "Do you go to school here to?"_

"_Yeah. I'm in my senior year and I've gotten into the psychology program of the grad school here." Spencer looked over at the group he was with and rolled his eyes. "Do you want to go get some coffee?"_

"_Sure. Um, I was just about to get some anyway." Max fiddled with his shirt sleeve as he glanced at the group of 20-somethings that continued to look down their noses at him._

"_Spencer, he's just some freshman. Let's just go. We have better things to do that hang out with him." Spencer ignored the girl who was speaking to him and motioned for Max to walk with him._

"_Come on Max. Let's get some coffee. I need the caffeine and you look like you're going to freeze." Max nodded and walked away with from the group._

"_You didn't have to leave your friends to hang out with me. I just wanted to say 'hi' since I haven't seen you in a few years. You stopped beyblading so I haven't seen you in awhile." Spencer pulled the door open for Max to walk through._

"_I decided that going to college would be a better use of my time than beyblading. Tala and Bryan did most of the blading anyway. This way I can get my doctorate in psychology and actually do something useful with my life." They were up to the counter and Spencer placed his order. "A mocha with a triple shot of espresso and a peanut butter cookie. What do you want Max?"_

"_Huh? Oh, uh, a large hot chocolate and a chocolate chip muffin." Max went to grab his wallet but Spencer had already handed over his credit card to pay for both orders. The found a corner table free and sat down with their drinks and pastries._

--**End Flashback**--

Kai nodded slowly. "Then you just started dating or something?"

Spencer shook his head. "I didn't think he was interested so I didn't make a move. We decided to have lunch every Tuesday and Friday for a while and just keep in touch with one another. We met in December right before finals, but I didn't ask him out until that fall."

--**Flashback**--

_Spencer sat across from Max watching him stare out the window of the small café they were eating lunch in. The younger blond had gotten even more attractive over the summer with his tanned skin and sun-kissed hair. Max looked over and grinned at the Russian. "Max, would you like to come over to my apartment and have dinner tonight?"_

"_Yeah. Dinner sounds great, especially if you're cooking!" Max watched Spencer's reaction and suddenly realized that the taller blond was asking him on a date. "Besides, I've been hoping you'd ask me out since we started hanging out again."_

"_So, it's a date. When does your last class end today?"_

_Max tapped his chin as he tried to recall the start and end times of his Friday classes. "Um, I have a graphic art class at four so I'll be done around four fifty or five."_

"_How about we meet here are five after five then. We can stop at the market and figure out what to make before going to my place." Max nodded and smiled as a light blush crept onto his well-defined cheekbones._

--**End Flashback**--

"Cute. How long after that did you two move in together?"

"One year, five months and twenty nine days" Max replied firmly.

Kai raised an eyebrow and Max's precision. "That was specific. You wouldn't happen to also know the hours and minutes would you?" Max blushed profusely at the teasing question.

"The day after Max moved in we celebrated our one and a half anniversary so it's an easy time to remember. Don't ask about the anniversary. Max was being odd about it. Although it almost didn't happen. Max's parents have a few objections to the two of us living together."

"And they don't even know we're dating" Max added.

"Why don't your parents know you're dating?" Kai inquired. The Max he knew told his parents everything. It wasn't like him to be keeping secrets from them.

"Well, mainly because they don't like that I'm friends with him. They don't trust anyone who came out of the abbey. You know that. You know they don't trust you and you weren't in the abbey as long as Spencer. I think that they think he's not capable of being a good friend or something along those lines. They're afraid he'll hurt me even though I've assured them he'd never do that." The sad look in the turtle's baby blue eyes was heartbreaking for both Russians. Spencer tugged Max into his lap and cradled his younger lover in his arms. "I'm okay. It just sucks that they won't listen to me."

Kai sighed softly. "I really don't want to know how you got your parents to agree to you moving in if they don't even know you're dating. I do however have a few other questions since I'm assuming you two aren't practicing abstinence." Max and Spencer both nodded. "You're being safe about it? You both got tested before you slept together?"

"Kai, we're not stupid or willing to take that kind of a risk. Our first time wasn't some spur of the moment caught up in the throws of passion thing. We talked about having sex and the possible consequences several times before hand. We've been very safe about it" Spencer explained.

Kai nodded and smiled at them. "Then I don't have a problem with it. I'm assuming you thought I wouldn't since you asked me to come over for a visit. Are you planning on telling everyone or even your parents?"

"After I'm done with undergraduate school we'll tell my parents. As for everyone else, I don't trust most of them to keep their mouths shut about it."

The three friends spent the remainder of the night catching up and talking about what the reunion was going to be like the next day.

* * *

And there you have it. Next chapter will be the start of the weekend long reunion. Please review. Your reviews have been very kind so far and have given me the inspiration need to keep going with this story. Thank you very much! And thank you for putting up with the revision. 


	4. The Reunion Begins!

Yay! Chapter four! I'm so proud of myself! This is the beginning of the reunion. It's not even the entire first day. This could turn into a long fic. Oh well. Judging by all of your very generous reviews I'm assuming you won't mind that. Thank you to everyone who reviewed. I respond to all my reviews, but one of them didn't have a way for me to get back in touch so I'll just say thank you to Alfred for reviewing and let you get to this lovely little story.

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Spencer parked his car in the hotel parking lot where the reunion was being held. He looked over at Max who was staring at his notebook while chewing on his pencil. The younger blonde's math final was on Monday and he wasn't exactly prepared so he had been working on problems all morning long. He hadn't had much luck with the one he was currently working on and it was getting to him. "Spencer, can you help me with this problem? I keep running into brick walls with it."

"Sure. We'll go over it as we head into the ballroom." Spencer climbed out of the car and walked around as Max dug around in the glove compartment for the calculator he had stashed in it. Spencer opened the door causing his lover to look up at him and grin while a slight blush blossomed on his checks.

"You're such a gentleman Spencer. I knew there was a reason I fell in love with you." Spencer chuckled and offered his hand to the turtle. Max accepted the hand and climbed out of the car only to be pulled into a gentle kiss. "Love you Spence."

"Love you too Max. Let's get going." They started walking towards their destination as Max explained the math problem he was working on and Spencer tried to explain where the other had gone wrong.

As they walked into the room and everyone turned to look at them Max was completely annoyed. "I don't know! I give up. There is no way I'm going to pass this final and that's all there is to it. I'll just take it again during the summer and pass it with flying colors because classes are always easier during the summer. I refuse to give myself a headache over this."

"Oh good you were both able to come. I was worried that with your finals you wouldn't be able to make it" Mr. Dickenson said excitedly.

"Can we not talk about finals? I'm stressing enough as is without people constantly reminding me of how soon they start" Max complained.

"You _need_ to be reminded about finals. You're going to fail your calc three test if you don't buckle down at some point this weekend and study your ass off for it" Spencer pointed out.

"I could take a No Credit grade and just re-take it in the fall. It's going to take me five years to finish undergrad anyway. Might as well try to get a better grade if I'm going to be there."

"Your logic amazes me sometimes." Max shrugged and went to greet his friends. Spencer rolled his eyes as he walked over to where Bryan was standing with Garland. "Hey. Long time no hear."

Bryan looked at him and raised an eyebrow. "Why'd you show up with Tate? You dating him or something?"

"We both go to NYU. Rent and utilities aren't cheap. It's better to share an apartment then rent one on our own and I can trust Max more than anyone else on that campus. Don't jump to conclusions Bryan. You're usually wrong."

Garland glanced between the two looking confused. "I thought you two were friends."

"We _were_ friends. Spencer just decided that he was too good for us and left. It's hard to forget that kind of thing." Bryan glared and Spencer sighed.

"Hold a grudge if you want Bryan, but you didn't need me. I don't and didn't want to spend the rest of my life beyblading. I want to be a psychiatrist so that I can help people to make up for what we did as part of the abbey. I'll talk to you later Bryan. I'm going to go say hello to the others."

"I trusted you to stick around and help _us_ Spencer. I thought you actually gave a damn about us." Bryan didn't bother to look at the tall blond as he spoke, but Spencer paused and spoke over his shoulder.

"You don't need my help Bryan. I can't heal your wounds. The kind of love and support I can offer isn't the type you need. Don't kid yourself Bryan. I've always given a damn about you. Do you really think I would have stuck around after the abbey closed if I wasn't worried about you and Tala?" Spencer walked away and ignored the falcon's angry muttering.

Meanwhile Max was being bombarded with questions concerning his arrival with Spencer and his disappearance from everything beyblade related. Max offered the group around him a smile. His eyes darted across the bladers as he took a mental note of who would be supportive when they finally found out and who wouldn't. Zeo was standing directly behind Tyson trying to desperately get the former world champion's attention, but Tyson was focused on Max. Ray was paying attention to Max, but he seemed to bemore concerned with checking out Johnny who was standing across the room. Daichi was being his usual hyper-active self simply asking questions. Emily and Kenny were looking at his laptop and listening to the conversation. Michael had his arms around Lee and Eddy was checking out Hilary's chest. Hilary herself was asking the most questions.

Finally, Max was able to get a word into the conversation. "Hang on! I can only answer so many questions. First of all I came with Spencer because I live with him and have for the past year and a half. We live together because he and I both attend NYU and can trust each other to pay half the bills when they're due. Plus the apartment is really close to campus so neither of us has to go very far to get to our classes. Secondly, I've been going to school and working to put money towards paying off my loans. Finally, I stopped keeping in touch with everyone because it was extremely difficult to keep in touch with everyone when I have a very challenging double major to deal with. I just don't have the time to deal with it all. I apologize and beg your forgiveness."

"Are you and Spencer dating then?" Hilary inquired.

"Huh? Dating? What makes you think we're dating? You've thoroughly confused me." Max pulled off his best confused face in hopes of fooling his friends into believing that he was indeed confused by Hilary's question.

"You're living with him Max. It's a logical assumption. We all know you prefer boys to girls" Hilary teased.

Max blushed. "We're not dating. I told you why we're living together. Trust me, if I were dating Spencer I wouldn't be on speaking terms with my parents. They barely trust him enough to let me live with him. How long am I going to have to talk before you actually believe me?"

"I believe you Max. You're not the type to lie" Ray replied.

"Finished staring at Johnny?" Max inquired. Ray blushed at the question. "I'll catch up with you guys later. I'm going outside for a minute." The others nodded and Max wandered outside for a breath of fresh air free of questions. He walked along the edge of the building trying to stop the headache that was forming. Max stopped dead in his tracks when he saw Enrique and Oliver making out a few feet in front of him. He cleared his throat in a successful attempt to get their attention. The couple jumped apart and blushed deeply.

"Hello Max. How are you?" Oliver asked trying to avoid the blonde's eyes.

"Does anybody know you're dating?" Both Europeans shook their heads and looked at him with worried eyes. "Don't worry about it. I won't tell anyone about you. It's not exactly my place to tell them."

"Thank you Max. We appreciate it. What are you doing out here anyway?" Enrique spoke up as he pulled Oliver into his arms.

"Getting some air and away from the interrogation I just went through. Apparently I haven't been a good friend and kept in touch as much as I should have so everyone has a million questions they want to ask me. Given that I get migraines and have been stressing over my finals that start next week I thought it would be a good idea to get out of there for a few minutes."

"Max, there you are. Are you alright?" Spencer stopped when he spotted Enrique and Oliver.

"Yeah Spence. I'm okay. I'm getting a bit of a headache though. I might have to go home early." It took him a minute to realize why Spencer was uncomfortable and promptly smiled. The two Europeans were looking between them clearly confused. "I don't mind keeping quiet about your relationship because Spencer and I have been dating for three years and only one other person knows about it. We just told Kai yesterday so I'm used to keeping relationships quiet."

"You two make a very cute couple. We'll stay quiet about your relationship in return for your courtesy. If you ever need to talk to someone please feel free to talk to us. We won't let anyone know. On our honor" Oliver replied kindly. The Europeans left leaving Spencer and Max alone.

"Ask Kai if you can use his room to lie down in. I'll run home real quick and get your medicine just in case this turns into a migraine." Max leaned up and kissed Spencer's lips gently.

"Thank you Spencer. I'll go talk to Kai." Spencer left to go to the parking lot and then home while Max went back inside.

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There is the fourth chapter. I hope you all thoroughly enjoyed that. It was really easy to write for the most part, but this whole story has been easy to write. Please keep reviewing for me so that I know if you're liking where this is going. Also, if you have a request for a pairing let me know and I'll see if I can't work it into the story. 


	5. They're Figuring It Out

Chapter 5! Woohoo! I can't believe how much you all like this story! I really was worried that people wouldn't like it with the couple being so out there. Thank you all so very very much. Thanks to Elemental Gypsy, I Love Hott Evil Men, Winter-Rae and HisokaYukiko for reviewing the last chapter. Enjoy!

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Spencer walked back into the ballroom and glanced around for any sign of Kai. He smirked when he spotted the phoenix with his back against the wall and Miguel's hands against the wall on either side of his head. Spencer walked over feeling bad about interrupting the moment, but he had to know which room Max was in. He made his way through the crowd of bladers and eventually reached Kai and Miguel. "Sorry to interrupt, but I need to talk to Kai." Miguel pulled away blushing. Kai also had a blush dusting his cheeks and nose which made Spencer smile. "Did Max go up to your room to lie down?" 

Kai nodded. "I'll show you up. I needed to get something from my room anyway. Do you mind if Miguel comes up with us? We were going to hang out in his room for awhile."

"No problem Kai. I just need to check on Max and give him his medicine if he needs it." The three bladers walked out of the ballroom and got into the elevator.

"You and Max seem pretty close Spencer. I hope you realize that most of the bladers are now convinced you two are dating and lying to all of them about it." Miguel's information didn't surprise Spencer in the least. He had a feeling the others were catching onto their relationship. Instead of saying anything he simply shrugged and watched the numbers above the elevator doors.

"What's going on with the two of you? You seemed to be getting pretty cozy before I showed up." Kai blushed again.

"I asked Kai out on a date tonight. He still hasn't given me an answer even if he did agree to hang out with me in my room."

"You should accept the invitation Kai. It might do you some good to have a boyfriend" Spencer teased. Kai attempted to glare at the blond, but it completely failed due to the deepening blush on his face. The elevator dinged and the doors hissed as they opened. They stopped in front of the door leading to Kai's room as Kai dug in his pocket for his extra key. After finding it he slid it through the door and waited for the little light on the door handle to turn green. The trio walked in to find Max nowhere in sight. Spencer frowned and walked over to the bathroom. His concern deepened when he saw Max sitting next to the toilet holding his head. Spencer rushed to his lover's side and gently lifted his head to look into dazed foggy eyes.

As Spencer looked after Max, Miguel turned to Kai. "They _are_ dating aren't they?"

"Do you have a problem with that?"

"Why would I? If they love each other then that's all that matters right?" Kai smiled at Miguel happy that the blond he'd been crushing on since they met was okay with his friends' relationship.

"Come on. Let's leave them alone. Max probably has a migraine and Spencer's the best person to take care of him right now." Miguel nodded and followed Kai out of the room.

Spencer picked his smaller lover off the floor and carried him bridal style to the bed. He laid Max on the cool sheets and shifted the pillow under his head. "Just try and relax for a minute love. I'll get a glass of water, your medicine and a cool cloth for your head. You'll be feeling better in no time at all" he whispered softly. Max nodded and shifted on the bed trying to get comfortable. Spencer found everything he would need to take care of his hurting turtle and went back to the bed. He gently slid his arm around Max's back and pulled him into a sitting position. "Here you go love. Take these and then take a nap. I'll stay with you until you feel better." Max did as he was told, but when Spencer didn't lie down beside him he got worried.

"Spencer, aren't you going to lie down with me? You know I sleep better if you're with me. Please" he begged. Spencer lied down and pulled the smaller blond close to him so that Max could rest his head on Spencer's chest.

Two hours later Max was still sound asleep on Spencer's chest when there was a knock at the door. Spencer slowly eased out of bed and went to answer the door. "Spencer! What are you doing up here? I thought that Max was up here by himself!" Tyson's loud grating voice was enough to make Spencer want to punch the younger man.

"Tyson shut up" he hissed. "You'll wake Max up. He's sleeping off a migraine. He'll be okay once he wakes up, but I promised that I would stay and watch over him just incase he's not as fine as he thinks he'll be."

"Spence, did I hear Tyson?" Max inquired groggily from the bed. Spencer shot a death glare at Tyson that made the former world champion flinch. "Spence?"

Spencer walked over to the bed and sat down next to Max careful to leave the door open so that Tyson wouldn't get any ideas about what they were doing. "You heard Tyson. He's being his usual obnoxious self. How are you feeling? Did your migraine die down?"

Max sat up slowly and grabbed onto Spencer's shirt to help steady himself. "Yeah, it's gone for the most part. It's just a dull ache right now. I think I need to eat though. I pretty much threw everything up earlier."

"We'll hold off on a meal for a little while yet. We have to make sure that you aren't going to throw up again. Are you up to going back down to the party or do you want to stay up here for a little longer?"

"No, I can go back down. I'm sure everyone's really worried about me. My parents are probably panicking about me right now. I don't want them to get too worked up over it." Spencer nodded and helped Max from the bed making sure to keep a hand on the turtle's back to steady him. "I'm okay Spencer. I'm not going to faint or anything."

"I've heard you say that before. I walked away and two seconds later I heard a loud thud. I had to rush you to the hospital so that you could get five stitches put in your head." Max blushed at the story even if he knew it was completely true.

"Hey Tyson. You didn't have to come up. I would've come down eventually."

Tyson beamed at his friend. "I know, but I had to make sure you hadn't passed out or something. Besides, I have a bet with Tala about who was watching over you. I said Kai since he's like your big brother or something, but Tala said it was Spencer for some reason. Now I owe him twenty bucks!" Spencer rolled his eyes at the bet as he made a mental note to question his former captain about why he picked Spencer in the first place. "How come Spencer was looking after you instead of Kai?"

"Spencer's used to looking after me when I have a migraine. I get four or five a month so he gets to deal with me at my most pathetic a lot, but Kai's never seen me get a migraine. They didn't start until after I started college. Anyway, I'm pretty sure Kai is in Miguel's room flirting. Right Spencer? I didn't dream that did I?"

"No. Miguel asked Kai out, but Kai hadn't answered when I asked. He'll probably say yes eventually. He's had a crush on Miguel since they met." Spencer hit the button that would take them to the lobby. The ride down was filled with Tyson asking random questions of Max and the blond patiently answering all of them. When they walked off the elevator and Tyson was still asking questions Spencer smacked him on the back of the head. "You're going to make his migraine come back if you don't shut up."

Max elbowed Spencer gently. "Don't hit him. My migraine's not going to come back as long as the medicine is in my system."

"See! There's no reason for you to be mean to me! Why are you living with him, Max? He's such a jerk!" Tyson exclaimed as they walked in.

Spencer started to answer, but stopped when Max smacked Tyson on the back of the head harder than he had. "Don't talk about him like that Tyson. You clearly don't know him if you think he's a jerk. He was only looking out for my health. It's not like you have any room to talk. You can be a major jerk too you know." Max walked off leaving a gaping Tyson and a smirking Spencer behind.

"Just for future reference, don't annoy Max when he's dealing with a migraine. It's not smart considering how short his temper gets." Spencer walked over towards Tala and Brooklyn who were both trying not to laugh at the entire exchange. "Hey."

"Hey Spencer. How have you been?" Tala inquired.

"Good. School suits me better than beyblading. I'm thinking of teaching a couple of courses once I get my degree."

"Have you talked to Bryan yet? He doesn't seem to be your biggest fan these days" Brooklyn replied as he tugged Tala back into his chest.

Spencer raised an eyebrow at the movement before responding. "He's pissed off at me, but I can't do much about it. If he's smart he won't push Garland away." Tala frowned at that comment clearly confused. "That's what Bryan needs. He knows he has friends that care about him, but he needs someone who is willing to love and care for him. Knowing Garland, I think he can provide that if Bryan takes his head out of his ass long enough to realize what a good thing he's got."

Tala nodded his agreement. "Since I know you were wondering Brooklyn and I started dating six months ago after we ran into each other at BBA headquarters. I'm happy since that's the next question out of your mouth." Tala smiled up at the blond who smiled back.

"I'm glad you've finally found someone who can make you happy. You deserve it."

"So do you Spencer. Are you seeing anyone?" Tala was concerned and he felt he had a right to be. "I know you Spencer. You fuss over and take care of everyone else and then ignore what you need. I don't care who it is, even if it's someone I don't know, so long as they take care of you and treat you well. You went through the same hell as the rest of us. I don't want you to spend the rest of your life alone."

Spencer smiled kindly at his former captain. "You don't have to worry about me Tala. There's someone in my life, but he doesn't want the world to know just yet. His parents don't exactly like me and he doesn't want to push them out of his life just yet."

"Good. You do know that it's pretty obvious who it is right? I had my suspicions when you two first showed up, but that pretty much made it obvious" Tala teased.

"Keep it quiet. We didn't want anyone to know and now more and more people seem to be finding out. If his parents find out they'll freak out at me _and_ Max and that is the last thing he needs right now."

"I'll keep it quiet, but if Bryan figures it out he won't. He was really hurt by your departure from our lives. He felt betrayed, but then again he had a crush on you for awhile there. Just be careful how much affection you show for each other around everyone else. Max's little outburst is going to get people talking about you two more than they already have been" Tala advised.

"You might want to consider telling everyone. They're going to figure it out on their own at this rate and it'll probably go over better if you tell them instead of them finding out on their own" Brooklyn suggested. Spencer nodded and carefully changed the subject to Miguel and Kai's budding relationship.

The end of the first day came around and the blond couple couldn't have been happier to go home. The others were planning on going clubbing, but Max and Spencer used their upcoming finals as an excuse to not go with. In reality neither planned on actually studying for their finals. They had every intention of taking a nice, long relaxing bath before going to bed. Once in the safety of the car Spencer leaned over and pressed his lips gently against Max's. "We need to tell them Max. They're figuring it out."

Max sighed as he turned his attention out the window. "I know. We'll announce it tomorrow at lunch. That way we can spend some more time with them before they begin hating us." Spencer reached over and squeezed his young love's knee in support.

"We have each other Max. That's all I need to survive in this world." Max looked over with tears in his eyes.

"You have no idea how much I love you for saying that Spencer."

The two went home and had a nice relaxing evening at home before crawling into bed and falling asleep in each other's arms with the knowledge that they would always have each other no matter how dark the rest of their world got.

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There you go! I hope you enjoyed it. It was something like 2280 words or so. I'm so proud of myself. I know a lot didn't happen, but I was mainly trying to set up the next chapter for people's reaction to the big announcement. I hope Elemental Gypsy enjoyed her little dose of MiguelxKai in there!Please review... pretty please... 


	6. The Confrontation

The confrontation is here! Max and Spencer are finally outed to the rest of the BBA. How will they take it? You'll have to read to find out. A big thanks to Elemental Gypsy, I Love Hott Evil Men, Kenzie Jadenwie, HisokaYukiko, and Winter-Rae for reviewing Chapter 5. I can't believe it's Chapter 6 already! Please enjoy and review!

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Max stared up at the ceiling above his bed. Spencer was tracing gentle, random patterns on his back in an attempt to get him to relax. Max was dreading what they had to do and beginning to have second thoughts about telling their friends about their relationship. He sighed and snuggled into Spencer's strong, broad chest. "I think we need to tell the others this morning. I'm afraid that if we wait I'll lose my nerve and not be able to tell them. I don't know if I'll be able to tell them when we get there."

Spencer's hand moved up into Max's hair and started to massage the turtle's scalp. "It's up to you love. Everyone that matters to me already knows and supports us with the exception of Bryan, but he's being difficult at the moment. I need to be able to work things out between him and I before I can expect him to support us." Max nodded and snuggled deeper into Spencer's embrace. "We need to get out of bed sometime soon so that we aren't late." Max nodded and slowly pulled away from his lover.

Max was buttoning his shirt when there was a knock at the door. Spencer kissed Max's cheek before walking over to the door. He looked through the peep hole and frowned when he saw Tala and Kai standing on the other side. He pulled the door open and stared at his friends. "What are you two doing here?"

"We came to warn you and Max about what's going to happen when you get to the reunion today" Tala replied. Spencer frowned as he stepped aside to allow his friends inside. They walked into the living room where Max was fussing with his hair trying to get it into some semblance of order. Since his beyblading days he had cut it so that it wasn't quite so wild, but it was still hard to control.

"Max, Tala and Kai are here. They wanted to talk to us about something" Spencer said in an attempt to get his distracted lover's attention. The American turtle turned around and faced the three Russians.

"Is something wrong?" he inquired.

"Only if you consider everyone finding out that you're dating before you told them" Tala replied.

Spencer and Max looked at each other worried. Max walked over and slipped his hand into Spencer's. The jade eyed Russian wrapped his arm around his blue eyed lover pulling him close. "How did they find out?" Spencer demanded.

"Apparently Ian and Mystel were suspicious about you being a couple so they followed you to the parking lot and saw you kiss in the car" Kai explained.

Max tightened his grip on Spencer's hand. "Are they okay with it?"

Tala sighed as he looked between the two blondes. "It's hard to tell. I'm not sure if they're mad that you lied about being together or just don't approve of your relationship. Either way you have to make an appearance at the reunion and settle this or it'll cause more trouble than it should."

Spencer nodded and gently squeezed Max. "We'll go and talk to them. I doubt it will do much good though." He turned his attention to Max. "Are you okay love? I know that you didn't want to deal with this like this." Max buried his face in Spencer's chest.

"You'll protect me right? You won't make me deal with them on my own right?" Max asked softly.

"Of course I'll be there. I would never make you face that alone. I'll be right by your side and if they try and hurt you they'll have bought themselves a one way ticket straight to hell." Spencer looked up at Kai and Tala. "Can I count on your support in this?"

Tala looked indignant as Kai responded. "You've got our full support as well as a few others. Miguel and Brooklyn are definitely on your side and believe it or not Bryan's getting pissed off at everyone for talking bad about you." Spencer smiled softly at the last name.

"Let's get going then. I don't want to put this off. If it's going to be a stressful day then the sooner I can crawl back into bed and hide under the covers the better" Max said softly.

The four friends walked into the hotel together. Once inside Kai and Tala went to find their boyfriends like Max and Spencer had requested of them. This was something that they had to do on their own. "Excuse me" Max spoke catching everyone's attention. "I, uh, realize that you all are angry at Spencer and me for lying to you, but we had a good reason. I knew that you would all have a problem with us simply because you don't seem to really know either of us. I know that you all think that Spencer will hurt me or that I'm too naïve to actually be in a relationship with him, but you're wrong. I love him and he loves me. I hope you can understand that."

"Max, you can't trust him. You are the one who doesn't know Spencer. If you had seen what was done to him in the abbey you would understand why we don't want you to be with him. He's not good for you" Judy stated.

"Max knows what I went through Judy. I haven't kept that a secret from him. It doesn't even matter anyway because I've dealt with what they did to me. It's no longer an issue." Spencer ground out already angry and beginning to become defensive.

"You have a temper Spencer. You have proven that to Judy and I many times already and you're proving it now. You're getting angry and I know that you won't hesitate to resort to physical violence. How can I trust that you haven't hit my son?" Mr. Tate demanded.

"Dad! I can't believe you'd even suggest that Spencer hits me. You must think I'm an idiot and completely incapable of defending myself. If Spencer abused me I wouldn't be with him. I trust him and the only reason his temper is starting to show is because he hates it when he can't protect me from being hurt. And don't kid yourself Dad; you're hurting me right now!" Tears were starting to fall from Max's baby blue orbs.

"Max you've lost it! Spencer's a jerk! How can you be with him?" Tyson jumped in.

Max looked at his best friend and sighed. "I've got a new life to live Tyson, a life that has nothing to do with beyblading and everything to do with being with the love of my life. If you make me choose between all of you and Spencer, I will choose Spencer without hesitation. I can't and won't live without him in my life. I refuse to give up my three year relationship with him because you haven't bothered to get to know him well enough to trust him. He's one of the few people I feel like I can run to no matter what. I won't give that up." Max whispered his last sentence so softly that only Spencer heard him. Tears were rolling freely down his cheeks and his hand was pressed gently to his forehead.

Spencer's attention was on Max completely. "Max, love, what's wrong? You aren't getting another migraine are you?" Max could only nod as the pain increased. "Come on I'll take you home."

Max shook his head and forced himself to speak past the pain and nausea in order to say one word, "hospital." Spencer's eyes widened as his concern for his young lover increased by ten fold. He gently gathered Max into his arms and lifted him bridal style.

"Stay out of our lives unless you plan to support us. I have no use for people who hurt _my_ Max" Spencer warned. The Russian whale walked out with his American turtle curled against his chest clinging to his neck.

Once they were out of earshot Kai allowed himself to tear the entire BBA a new one. "How dare you turn your backs on them? The only thing they've done is fall in love and you're angry at them for it. You are the biggest bunch of bastards I have ever met. They have every right to be happy together. Spencer will do nothing but protect Max for as long as they live and Max will do nothing but make Spencer happy. They deserve each other. They deserve to have the understanding and support of their friends. I thought you all were their friends, but clearly you don't know what it means to be a true friend because a true friend wouldn't turn his back because of something so stupid!"

"It's interesting that you have such a problem with Spencer dating Max. You've raised no objections to my being with Garland, Ian with Mystel or Tala with Brooklyn and I'm certain you won't have any problem with Kai and Miguel being together yet you have a problem with Spencer and Max. Why is that? It isn't like Max is so little kid completely incapable of taking care of himself. Max grew up a lot over the years and Spencer wouldn't be with him if he were naïve and immature. Are you really that hypocritical?" Bryan inquired.

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Spencer sat beside his lover's hospital bed waiting for the doctor to come back. He ran his fingers against the sleeping turtle's cheek gently. He heard the door open and turned to look at the doctor standing before him. "How is he?"

"He'll be fine. It's a migraine that just happens to feel worse than normal because of how quickly it set in. I am a little concerned about the frequency of Max's migraines though. You said that he gets a migraine almost once a week, correct?" Spencer nodded. "I would like him to start taking more time to relax. His stress seems to trigger his migraines and if his stress level lowers than the number of migraines might decrease. In a week or two I'd like him to undergo a stress test. It might help to know just how high his stress level is. He can be discharged once he wakes up and his migraine is gone." Spencer nodded again and turned his attention back to his precious lover.

"Get better Max. I need you" he whispered to the silent room.

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There you go. Was I too mean to poor Spencer and Max? Possibly. It just kind of wrote itself though. I hope you enjoyed it and please review! 


	7. The Aftermath

Oh wow... chapter seven and it's not done yet. This is the aftermath of the confrontation. A big thank you to Elemental Gypsy and Winter-Rae for reviewing chapter six.

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Spencer opened the passenger side door to his car and smiled at Max who was feeling better, but was still tired. He had been discharged from the hospital only a half an hour earlier, but they were both still in pain. They were both hurt by the reactions of the BBA. They had both believed that the others would be able to accept them despite the lies they had told. Max held his arms out to Spencer silently asking the taller blond to carry him inside. Spencer chuckled, but obliged his lover and lifted him out of the car and carried him into their apartment building. They walked out of the elevator onto their floor and were surprised to see the G Revolutions, All Starz, Tates and Mr. Dickenson standing outside the door to their apartment. Max tensed and Spencer gave him a gentle squeeze. He walked over to the door with Max still curled up in his arms and set the American turtle on his feet. Max latched onto Spencer's shirt in an effort to stay on his feet. Spencer unlocked the door and turned his attention to Max. The younger blond shrugged as if to say he had no idea what to do. Spencer sighed and rested his hand on the side of Max's face. "Can you make it to the couch on your own?"

"That would be really sad if I couldn't" Max retorted. The turtle attempted to take a few steps and was promptly caught when his knees gave out. He tilted his head back and gave Spencer a lopsided smile. "Or maybe I need a little help getting there." Spencer scooped him up in his arms to carry him bridal style into the apartment. "Are you going to let them come it?"

Spencer sighed as he turned to look at the group standing in the hallway. "You can come in if you must. Otherwise, leave." He turned his back on the group and headed into the apartment. Max had his arms wrapped around Spencer's neck and his chin resting on the Russian whale's shoulder as he watched the group file in and take off their shoes before following the couple into the living room. Spencer set Max down gently on the couch and kissed his lips. "Do you want anything to eat? You haven't eaten since breakfast."

Max shook his head no. "Sit with me." Spencer sighed as he sat down next to Max and the younger blond crawled into his lap and curled against his chest. Spencer's fingers started combing through golden blond tresses as Max snuggled into his arms. He shifted slightly in order to look at the group in front of him. "Why did you come?"

"We wanted to check on you. We were all really worried about you. You scared us when you asked to go to the hospital" Hilary replied.

Spencer glared as his arm tightened around Max's waist. "Oh yeah, you're real worried about Max's health. So much so that you _caused_ his migraine. If you actually gave a damn about him you wouldn't have acted like you did. You would have trusted him to make his own decisions. You would have never turned your back on him like you did. I don't care if you don't like me. That isn't important, but you hurt Max and that is unforgivable."

Max turned his attention to Spencer as his cheeks adopted a slight tinge. "You're making me blush Spence!" Spencer smiled softly at him and kissed his forehead. Max grinned and snuggled back against his lover and tucked his head beneath his lover's chin. "Love you Spencer."

Spencer kissed the top of his head. "I love you too Max" Spencer whispered.

"Max, do you really love him so much that you would choose him over your friends and family?" Judy asked quietly.

Max looked up into his mother's eyes with dull blue eyes. "I'll always choose him over everyone else. He's the most important person in the world to me."

"Why?" Mr. Tate asked.

"You mean besides the fact that I'm madly in love with him and can't imagine my life without him. I need him Dad. He makes me happier than I've ever been in my entire life. You know that I got screwed up after you and Mom separated. I don't have to pretend around him. I don't have to pretend to be happy or always energetic or the dumb hyperactive blond the entire BBA wanted to pigeonhole me as. He accepts me for who and what I am. No one's done that and offered to love me at the same time. I honestly need to be with him. He treats me better than anyone. He's always looking out for me and taking care of me. Even before we started dating he took care of me. He'll always be there for me and that's something I'll never doubt." Max yawned sleepily. He turned his attention to Spencer. "I'm sleepy" he purred softly.

Spencer shifted his grip on Max so that when he stood up he was able to carry Max. Spencer walked into their bedroom and laid Max down on their bed. He kissed his young lover gently on the lips and smiled softly. "I love you so much Max. I'll never do anything to hurt you. I'll always be here for you no matter what. I promise you that." Max grinned lazily as he tugged on Spencer's shirt to pull him down into another kiss. This one lasted longer as their lips moved against each other gently, but firmly. Spencer pulled back and kissed Max's forehead. "Get some sleep Max. You need it. I'll deal with the crowd in the living room and wake you in time for dinner." Max nodded and shifted in the bed. He closed his eyes as Spencer brushed his fingertips along his jaw line.

Spencer stood from the bed once he was sure that Max was sound asleep. He walked back into the living room and pulled the door shut silently behind him. He strode over to the group and glared. "You have done nothing but cause Max stress today. His doctor at the hospital said that he needs to reduce his stress so unless you plan on supporting his decision to be with me and stop causing undue stress you need to leave. I will not tolerate you hurting him. It is unacceptable. If you need time to decide on whether or not you will support us you can leave and either come back with your support or stay out of our lives." Spencer turned his attention to Kai who had been watching the whole proceedings with an annoyed glare. "You're welcome to stay Kai. I know that Max has missed being able to spend time with you. Maybe if you're here he'll actually eat something tonight instead of pushing his food around his plate like he usually does after a migraine."

Kai nodded and smiled at his friend. "I'd be happy to stay for awhile. I'll just call Miguel and let him know that I won't be able to make dinner."

"Don't cancel your dinner plans Kai. Invite Miguel over. Max won't mind and it might do him some good to realize he still has friends within the BBA. If there are others you think might be happy to join us feel free to invite them as well. Right now, I'm going to lie down with Max for a little while and make sure he sleeps well. He's always complaining about how he can't sleep if I'm not around." Spencer let his eyes flick over the group one last time before turning and going back to the bedroom and his precious Max.

When Spencer emerged several hours later he was surprised by the group gathered in his living room. Kai and Miguel were here like expected as well as Tala, Brooklyn, Bryan, Garland, Enrique, Oliver and even Ray who greeted him with a huge grin. "I never actually left. I don't care if you and Max are dating so long as you're happy. You know I'm not that closed minded."

"Thank you, Ray. I'm sure Max will be thrilled to hear you say that. He's still sleeping and I'd rather not wake him up just yet. I don't think I have enough food to feed all of you, but I do know a good take out place that Max and I occasionally order from" Spencer admitted.

"That's okay! Kai told Oliver and I that you didn't have a whole lot of food in your fridge so Oliver took it upon himself to get enough food for everyone. Actually, I think we have more than enough" Enrique laughed.

"And don't think we're the only ones who are okay with you two. There are several others who are very supportive and just didn't feel it their place to come over. If you would like I would be more than happy to assist you in making dinner and I'm sure Ray wouldn't mind either" Oliver added.

"Thank you. It's good to hear and I'd be happy for some help in the kitchen. I'm so used to cooking for two anymore that I barely remember how to cook for a large amount of people."

"Just pretend you're cooking for Ian. That should do it" Bryan spoke up with a smirk.

Spencer nodded to Bryan with a small smile tugging at his lips. "Where is Ian?"

"Out with Mystel. I do believe they were headed to a night club to have some fun until tomorrow morning when we all leave" Tala explained.

"That's what Mystel told me" Garland put in.

Spencer woke Max an hour later and helped him out into the living room. A huge grin broke out across the turtle's face as he realized the number of people sitting around his living room. "Now if only I could win over my family and the rest of my teams" he said softly.

Ray looked up and smiled sympathetically. "Hilary and Kenny are more annoyed that you lied about your relationship than anything. They'll come around soon. Tyson's jealous as hell so I don't know about him."

"Tyson's jealous of what?" Tala inquired.

"You don't know? Tyson has probably the world's biggest crush on Max. He's jealous that Max went for Spencer and not him." Max blushed, but smiled at his friends. The group stayed up late as they joked and caught up more than they had been able to at the reunion. The others were clearly interested in Max's school as well as Spencer's future career plans.

When Max and Spencer finally crawled into bed they were beyond exhausted. Max snuggled into Spencer's strong embrace. "I love you Spencer. I really do."

"I love you too Max. Now and forever."

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I apologize for the slightly abrupt ending, but if I didn't this would be insanely long. Oh well. The next chapter should make up for this abrupt ending. I'm tired so it's not the best, but I didn't want to wait to post this. I hope you enjoyed it and please be kind enough to review.


	8. Final Choices

Here it is. The final chapter of this lovely SpencerxMax that has been supported so nicely. A big thanks to Kenzie Jadenwie, Winter-Rae, HisokaYukiko and Elemental Gyspsy for reviewing Chapter 7. Also a big thanks to Elemental Gypsy, Kenzie Jadenwie, HisokaYukiko, I Love Hott Evil Men, and Winter-Rae for reviewing the first draft of this chapter. sweatdrops Enjoy the update!

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It had been a week and a half since the big blowout at the BBA reunion and Max and Spencer were back to living their normal lives. Their midterms were over which meant that they could simply relax with one another while enjoying the gorgeous fall weather. They hadn't heard from most of Max's teammates or his parents since, but Kai called almost everyday to check on them. The others had started keeping in touch more as well which was exciting for the younger blond. The pair was sitting in their apartment watching the movie RENT when the phone started ringing. Spencer picked up the remote and paused the movie, but neither stood to answer the phone content to let the machine pick it up. Eventually the phone stopped ringing and the machine beeped. Both stared at it in surprise when Judy's voice came through the machine. "Max, it's your mother. Your father and I would like to have dinner with you tonight. We think that we need to talk to you about some of your life decisions. Please meet us at Japanese restaurant just down the street from your apartment at six o'clock. We'll see you tonight." The machine beeped signaling the end of the message being recorded. The two blondes looked at each other skeptically.

"Are you going to go?" Spencer asked cautiously. Max's parents had become a sore spot for the American turtle ever since the Tates had found out about their relationship. Max hadn't spoken of his parents willingly for a week and before that he spoke of them with anger showing clearly in his voice. After that Spencer had avoided the topic to keep from stressing his lover.

Max shrugged. "I honestly don't know. Let's finish the movie and I'll decide later whether or not I go. I probably will just so that I can reassure them that I'm not leaving you no matter what they say or do." Spencer nodded and pulled Max into his lap to cuddle as he turned the movie back on. "If I go, will you go with me?"

Spencer looked down at the mop of golden hair that was sitting atop his Max's head. "I don't think they want me there." Max shrugged his indifference to what his parents wanted and Spencer smiled. "If you want me to go I'll go. I told you that I'll do anything you want me to do within reason." Max nodded and turned his attention to the movie as he intertwined his fingers with Spencer's.

They spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing curled up together with nothing to distract them from each other and their memories. As Max cuddled into Spencer's chest yawning both blondes couldn't help but remember their one year anniversary. It was also the first time they made love and a day neither would ever forget. They had spent the night in an almost identical position and it had become a favorite way to cuddle over the course of their relationship.

_Max used his key to get into his boyfriend's apartment as he smiled widely to himself. He was thrilled that they were celebrating at Spencer's place instead of going out. The young blond had every intention of taking their relationship to a new level and it would just be easier to stay at home rather than go out to a nice restaurant. _Besides, we'd have to get all dressed up to go out. _ Max chuckled to himself as he made his way through the tiny apartment. He knew the layout almost as well as the layout of his own dorm room or his room at his parents' houses. He rounded the corner into the kitchen and smiled at the sight in front of him. Spencer was standing at the counter putting the finishing touches on their plates and humming along with the radio he always left on while cooking. Max walked up behind the Russian quietly and for once undetected. His arms slid around Spencer's waist gently as he buried his face in his boyfriend's broad back. He hummed softly when Spencer's only reaction was to squeeze the younger blonde's hand. Spencer put down the spatula he was holding before removing Max's hands from his waist. When he turned around he let the turtle wind his arms around him once again. Spencer smiled softly at his boyfriend before placing a gentle kiss on soft, full lips._

_Max grinned up at Spencer as the elder hugged him tightly. He leaned up in hopes of getting a second, longer kiss and was quickly obliged. When they parted Spencer raised a questioning eyebrow. Max sighed and rested his head against his boyfriend's shoulder. "I want to be yours completely Spence. I want you to have all of me" he whispered softly._

_Spencer's initial reaction was to squeeze him gently. Then he questioned his young boyfriend's decision. "Are you sure Max? I know we've talked about this in the past, but are you sure you're ready? You weren't looking for that kind of commitment after you and Ray were together for so long."_

_Max nodded as he sighed. "I'm sure Spencer. Ray and I _were_ together for a long time and we were very committed, but it's different with you. I don't think I ever truly loved Ray and I think the same goes for him. We mistook our emotions towards each other as romantic love when really it was just the love of best friends. I want to be with you Spencer. I've thought about it a lot and I'm one hundred percent sure about it."_

_Spencer kissed the top of Max's head gently. "Let's have dinner. We'll see where the night takes us."_

Max shifted so that he could look up at Spencer and smiled softly. The Russian raised the same questioning eyebrow he had on that anniversary and Max grinned. Instead of saying anything he decided to simply snuggle back into his lover's chest and let his mind wander over more memories that he rarely had the time to indulge in. School kept them so busy that it was hard to get time like this together. There simply weren't enough hours in the day to get all of their work done and spend quality time together. There were days when it seemed that the only time they saw each other was right after they woke up and right before they went to bed. On those days they were barely able to have a conversation let alone time to curl up and enjoy each other's company. Spencer shifted slightly as his mind wandered back to the day he suggested to Max they move in together.

"_Huh?" Spencer couldn't help but chuckle at the confused expression on Max's face. Max looked at him curiously and tilted his head to one side in confusion. "You want to get an apartment together when my parents don't even know we're dating? How's that going to work?"_

"_I don't know. We'll get a two-bedroom apartment close to campus. I saw one advertised today. We can afford it and we wouldn't have to tell your parents that we'll be sharing a room. They can allow themselves to be under the delusion that we are simply living together for convenience. It's that or we could just tell them we're dating. I realize you don't like that idea, but it's still a possibility. It's up to you." Spencer watched Max's thought process through his eyes. It always amused the Russian because he was so used to being around people who didn't give a single clue as to how they were feeling. Max on the other hand was an open book to anyone who bothered to look._

"_Okay. I want to do it. It'll be a lot better than any other possible alternative. I don't think we'll tell my parents yet though. I'm a little worried about how they might react. They don't like you." Spencer shrugged off the last statement. He knew well enough that the Tates didn't trust him and didn't like that Max was spending so much time with him._

"_I'll call the realtor tomorrow and set up an appointment to check out the apartment." He pulled Max close and pressed their lips together in a gentle kiss. "I love you Max."_

_Max grinned like a Cheshire cat at the confession. "I love you too Spencer. Always."_

Spencer looked down at Max and smiled when he realized that the turtle had fallen into a sound sleep. He glanced at the clock and regretfully realized that he would have to wake his lover so that they could go to dinner with the Tates. Smiling softly he lowered his head and pressed a gentle kiss to Max's lips to wake him up in the most pleasant way possible.

The pair walked into the restaurant where they had been told to meet Judy and Mr. Tate. They spotted the two in the back of the restaurant and were immediately surprised by the people sitting there. Not only were the Tates there, but Tyson, Hilary and Kenny were all sitting there as well. Max slipped his hand into Spencer's looking for support from his much stronger lover. The Russian squeezed his turtle's hand gently as they headed towards the table. Tyson spotted them first and glared. "You weren't supposed to bring him Max. It was just supposed to be us!"

Max glared at his former best friend. "I was under the impression that it was going to be just my parents and me. Not that it makes any difference. I wanted Spencer to come because I feel better when he's around and it's easier for me to say what I want to say. I don't let people walk all over me like I used to because I know that I have him to fall back on. If all you planned on doing is talking me out of being with Spencer then we can cut this short. I have no desire to listen to any of that shit again. I made my decision. You aren't going to change it no matter what." Spencer's fingers tightened around Max's hand in an attempt to calm him. He didn't care that Max was speaking loudly because the restaurant was devoid of other customers. He was more worried about what the doctor had said the day before about his scores on the stress test being much higher than it should have been.

"We want you to be happy. Happy and safe and we simply don't trust Spencer to keep you safe" Hilary explained.

Spencer glared at the group as he tugged on Max's wrist gently. "If that's all you have to talk about then we'll be leaving. Max doesn't need this kind of stress again. Let's go home Max. I don't want you to have to go to the hospital again."

Max nodded and stepped closer to Spencer. "I made my choice. Spencer is the number one priority in my life and will be until the day I die. That's not changing. I'm sorry that you won't be a part of our lives anymore. You all meant so much to me, but I won't give him up for you. I just won't."

The Tates, Tyson, Hilary and Kenny all watched as Max and Spencer walked out of the restaurant hand in hand. "We've lost him then. He'll never forgive us now."

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Max climbed into bed as Spencer placed his book down on the bedside table. "Are you okay with what you did tonight Max? Will you be okay without them as a part of you life?"

"Like I said at the reunion, I have a new life to live and it centers around you. I'm not giving that up no matter what."

Spencer smiled softly at the American. He turned off the bedside light before leaning over and pushing Max flat on his back. Max smiled up at his lover as he twined his arms around Spencer's neck. The Russian whale pressed their lips together as he shifted into a better position. Their lips moved against one another in perfect synchronization as their tongues flicked out to meet each other. They truly loved one another and they would never let anyone destroy the happiness they had found in one another. Never would they let go of their soul mate.

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There you go! The updated chatper eight. I hope you enjoyed it enough to review or re-review! It would be much appreciated! 


	9. Author's Note

Author's Note

Not a chapter...

Since I'm pretty sure that ff dot net doesn't send out notifications for chapters that have been replaced I thought I'd post an author's note letting all of you know that the chapter eight has been re-written, is over 2000 words and is much better than the last one I posted. I apologize for the wait and the crappiness of the last chapter. It truly was bad. I re-read it before re-writing it and was absolutely appalled at how bad it was. I hope that the new finale is of a better quality and lives up to your expectations of my writing. This is the last version of this chapter unless I catch a glaring error that needs to be fixed. Thank you all for supporting this fic so faithfully. It means a lot to me.


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